Same accommodation for every student

[Wildcats75]

Thank you for taking my question.

My school (either admin or the ESE department) has adopted a policy in which every 504 student gets one extra day on all assignments, regardless of disability, strengths and weaknesses, course, etc. In my novice attempt to learn about 504 plans, it seems that they all should be customized to fit the needs of that particular student, and that a boilerplate accommodation for everyone doesn't actually meet anyone's needs. This has caused problems with teachers because the extra day often doesn't make sense given the context of the assignment. 

Now we have the ESE department telling teachers that we are breaking the law if we don't follow the 504 plan. We get that, but we feel that the 504 plans are being poorly (and lazily) developed to begin with. 

I would appreciate any thoughts from the experts here.

[Lisa Lightner]

That’s super frustrating—but unfortunately, not surprising.

Section 504 accommodations must be individualized, just like an IEP. A 504 Plan is designed to provide equal access to education for students with disabilities by offering accommodations that meet their specific needs. However, unlike an IEP, which includes specialized instruction and goals, a 504 Plan typically focuses on removing barriers to learning within the general education setting.

Each 504 Plan should be based on the individual needs of the student, determined through an evaluation process, and should outline specific accommodations to ensure they receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE). While there is no standardized format for a 504 Plan, it should be tailored to the child’s unique needs rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach.

A 504 Plan should be individualized, just like an IEP. But what often happens (and it sounds like this is the case at your school) is that schools create blanket, cookie-cutter accommodations instead of actually tailoring the plan to the student’s unique needs. They slap the same five generic accommodations on every 504 Plan (like "preferential seating" or "extra time on tests"), whether or not they’re actually useful for that child.

This is a failure of the 504 team. They should be evaluating each student individually and determining what accommodations they actually need to access their education. Teachers shouldn’t be stuck implementing meaningless accommodations that don’t serve the student (or worse, accommodations that aren’t even appropriate for the student).

If you’re in a position to push back, you can:

• Ask for clarification—How does this accommodation help this specific student?
• Request more detailed documentation in the 504 Plan—what does "preferential seating" mean for this student? Front of the room? Away from distractions? Near the teacher?
• Encourage the team to actually discuss accommodations instead of just copying and pasting from a template.

Sadly, many schools treat 504s as a box to check rather than a real support system. If you’re seeing this happen, you’re not wrong to be frustrated.

Do you want any resources or talking points to bring this up with your admin?

[Wildcats75]

15 minutes ago, Lisa Lightner said:

That’s super frustrating—but unfortunately, not surprising.

Section 504 accommodations must be individualized, just like an IEP. A 504 Plan is designed to provide equal access to education for students with disabilities by offering accommodations that meet their specific needs. However, unlike an IEP, which includes specialized instruction and goals, a 504 Plan typically focuses on removing barriers to learning within the general education setting.

Each 504 Plan should be based on the individual needs of the student, determined through an evaluation process, and should outline specific accommodations to ensure they receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE). While there is no standardized format for a 504 Plan, it should be tailored to the child’s unique needs rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach.

A 504 Plan should be individualized, just like an IEP. But what often happens (and it sounds like this is the case at your school) is that schools create blanket, cookie-cutter accommodations instead of actually tailoring the plan to the student’s unique needs. They slap the same five generic accommodations on every 504 Plan (like "preferential seating" or "extra time on tests"), whether or not they’re actually useful for that child.

This is a failure of the 504 team. They should be evaluating each student individually and determining what accommodations they actually need to access their education. Teachers shouldn’t be stuck implementing meaningless accommodations that don’t serve the student (or worse, accommodations that aren’t even appropriate for the student).

If you’re in a position to push back, you can:

• Ask for clarification—How does this accommodation help this specific student?
• Request more detailed documentation in the 504 Plan—what does "preferential seating" mean for this student? Front of the room? Away from distractions? Near the teacher?
• Encourage the team to actually discuss accommodations instead of just copying and pasting from a template.

Sadly, many schools treat 504s as a box to check rather than a real support system. If you’re seeing this happen, you’re not wrong to be frustrated.

Do you want any resources or talking points to bring this up with your admin?

Thank you so much for the detailed response. I am meeting with an administrator in about 20 minutes. I am going to point out several of the things you mentioned, including those three points to look for in a student's plan. After this meeting I will ask for more resources if it goes nowhere. Thanks again, and have a great afternoon.

[Wildcats75]

I had to LOL about the five generic accommodations. This is a screenshot from one of mine. Like clockwork.

 

[Elemeno]

There's a reason preferential seating has become a joke. 

[Carolyn Rowlett]

Totally agree.  But, not to give school districts any slack, it is more difficult these days to determine "preferential seating," because the teachers tend to more around the room, teach from different locations/white boards, etc.  As Lisa states above, you have to look at the individual student and what his/her needs are and then precisely define "preferential seating."  You also have to ask if the onus is on the child to determine the best seating or the teacher.  This depends on the child's age, awareness of their issues, and ability to self-advocate.

[JSD24]

The school is breaking the law if they do not follow the 504.  It's a civil rights violation when it's not followed.  My child would have felt too self-conscious for small group testing and we would have had issues with school refusal if that was on the 504.  (Could that be a valid reason for it to be removed from the 504?)

I'm curious if every student with an IEP gets these accommodations too.  I'm thinking of my friend's son who is gifted & had a speech only IEP.  The extra day creates executive functioning issues too.  Will the student remember to hand the assignment in on the day after the teacher collects it from the rest of the class?  Will the teacher prompt & make the student self-conscious?

I'm pretty sure if the student refuses to use an accommodation, that's OK because it's on the student & not the school when this happens.

I do see issues with this.  State testing, SAT, PSAT, ACT, Ap exams, etc should all get double time if double time is on the 504.  Is the school sending requests for this to the appropriate place so students have this with all testing?  (SAT testing with double time does not get done on a Saturday like typical SAT testing.  There has to be a room and someone to monitor testing too.)

I'm taking a class & need preferential seating.  When I look to the right, I tend to get double vision where with looking to the left, it's not an issue.  Last semester, the tables were 90 degrees to the board & the professor either was in the front or back when giving instruction.  In other words, he was either to my right or to my left.  Definitely not simple depending on the teacher, how much they walk around and the layout of the room.  We don't have assigned seats so I don't need a written accommodation.  This semester, desks are in rows which is better for me.

Diabetes should always trigger a 504.  Not sure why all this is needed if you have issues with blood sugar needing to be externally controlled.

The one plus I see is that it's easier for teachers to remember if every 504 students has these.  Will the teachers also remember the unique-to-the-student accommodations?  My child had bathroom breaks as a 504 accommodation.